Is Good Dental Hygiene Enough To Prevent Dental Discoloration?

There are many theories regarding dental health, and while some of these theories have a factual basis, they often fail to capture the complexities behind many dental health issues. One such misunderstood issue is dental discoloration.

Dental discoloration, commonly referred to as tooth staining, is a condition where one or more teeth are stained by an agent that causes them to lose the natural color that's expected of teeth. One of the benefits of dental hygiene that's commonly mentioned is that it helps to prevent this discoloration, but is good dental hygiene all that it takes?

Dental Hygiene Definitely Helps

One aspect of this fact that is definitely true is that good dental hygiene helps to prevent discoloration of teeth. Proper dental hygiene prevents the formation of cavities that can cause a deep brown stain to form on teeth. Regularly brushing and flossing will also remove coatings that may have been formed by foods, drinks, and sauces that can cause staining, such as red wine and coffee.

In fact, one of the reasons why stained teeth is a major problem among drug users is the fact that drug use causes many addicts to ignore their dental hygiene.

Proper Dental Hygiene Isn't Enough

While dental hygiene plays a major role in dental discoloration, it's only one of many things you have to do to avoid this problem. Poor dental hygiene can create some of the factors that lead to discoloration, but there are other factors that have nothing to do with dental hygiene.

For instance, some of the worst tooth stainings are actually caused by medication taken by pregnant women or very young children. The presence of certain minerals in drinking water is also another factor that has nothing to do with dental hygiene. In such cases, all the brushing and flossing in the world wouldn't have made a difference.

Beyond Dental Hygiene

Proper dental hygiene can help to prevent discoloration of teeth, but it only deals with certain aspects of the problem. There are other issues leading to staining, and these have to be addressed using different solutions. Additional steps that you can take to prevent teeth staining include:

• Checking if prescribed medication has a history of causing staining

• Having your water tested for staining agents

• Avoiding smoking and use of other drugs

Ultimately, if you're already affected by tooth discoloration, teeth whitening from a professional cosmetic dentist can offer you a chance to regain your bright, white smile. Any dentist will advise you to address factors you can control, but it's not uncommon that teeth remained discolored after a patient has done everything they can. This is the situation when a cosmetic dentist will be invaluable to giving you a white smile you can be proud of. You can start to see the difference in your teeth's appearance from the first whitening visit.